Overview
- The federal government approved entry for a time- and location-limited Taliban "technical delegation" to provide equipment and printing support at Afghan diplomatic sites, a step confirmed by the Foreign Office on Monday.
- Delegates received short-term visas restricted to Germany and were subject to security checks before travel, with officials saying the work is limited to technical tasks such as passport and label printing.
- Berlin says the decision is intended to increase deportations by improving consular processing for roughly 450,000 Afghans registered in Germany and to remove a practical bottleneck.
- Human-rights groups led by Pro Asyl and the government’s human-rights commissioner have sharply criticized the move for risking de-facto normalization of the Taliban and for endangering Afghans who use those missions.
- The decision deepens a domestic split between Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt and the Union, who press for tougher deportations, and parts of the governing coalition that warn of legal, safety and ethical consequences, with further political debate and potential legal challenges expected.